🧴 Skin Tags: What They Are & Safe Ways to Remove Them

Home🧴 Skin Tags: What They Are & Safe Ways to Remove Them
🧴 Skin Tags: What They Are & Safe Ways to Remove Them

Have you noticed small, soft skin growths on your neck, underarms, eyelids, or groin?

You’re not alone.

Skin tags (medically called acrochordons) are one of the most common benign skin growths — affecting up to 60% of adults, especially after age 40.

They’re:

✅ Harmless — not cancerous or contagious
✅ Painless — unless irritated by clothing or jewelry

✅ Common in skin folds — where friction occurs
While they don’t require treatment, many people choose to remove them for cosmetic reasons or comfort.

Let’s explore the safe, effective ways to remove skin tags — and why you should avoid dangerous DIY methods like candle wax, nail polish, or string.

🧠 What Causes Skin Tags?

Skin tags form when clusters of collagen and blood vessels get trapped in thicker skin folds.

Risk Factors:
Age
More common after 40
Friction
From clothing, jewelry, or skin rubbing
Genetics
Run in families
Insulin resistance
Linked to prediabetes and metabolic syndrome
Pregnancy
Hormonal changes and weight gain increase risk

✅ They’re not caused by poor hygiene.

✅ Safe & Proven Removal Methods

1. Ligation (Tying Off)

A doctor ties a tiny thread or suture around the base of the tag

Cuts off blood supply — the tag falls off in 5–7 days
Quick, low-risk, and office-based
✅ One of the safest at-professional methods.

2. Cryotherapy (Freezing)
Liquid nitrogen is applied to freeze the tag

The tag darkens and falls off in 1–2 weeks
May require 1–2 treatments
✅ Available at dermatology clinics and some urgent care centers.

3. Excision (Cutting)
A doctor numbs the area and snips off the tag with sterile scissors

Immediate results
Minimal bleeding when done properly
✅ Best for larger or bothersome tags.

4. Electrocautery (Burning)
Uses a small electric current to burn off the tag

Done under local anesthesia
Leaves minimal scarring when performed by a pro
✅ Often used for multiple tags.

🚫 Dangerous DIY Methods to Avoid
❌
Candle wax
Causes
burns, blisters, and scarring
❌
Nail polish remover or essential oils
Can irritate or damage skin — no proven effect
❌
Cutting with scissors or nail clippers
Risk of
infection, bleeding, and scarring
❌
String or dental floss (at home)
Can lead to
infection or incomplete removal
❌
Apple cider vinegar (long-term use)
Can cause chemical burns — limited evidence

⚠️ The skin around your neck, eyes, and armpits is thin and sensitive — not a place for risky experiments.